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By Times’ Junior Journalist Charlie Peterson If you missed the first two parts of my United States travel series, this is the trip we spent five years saving for. Part one took us to Las Vegas, part two to Los Angeles, and now in part three we’re visiting the Disney Parks of California. Our two-day trip to Disneyland was unforgettable! We stayed at the Clementine Hotel and Suites Anaheim, which was only a five-minute walk from the park. It was so surreal, being in a place I’d only ever seen in movies and videos online for my whole childhood, to it being right in front of my eyes. On the first day, we visited the original Disneyland Park, which is the original Disney Park. We had a lightning pass, meaning we could skip one line per hour, which was so helpful when we didn’t feel like standing around for a long time. Some of my favourite rides in the Disneyland Park were the ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ ride, ‘Space Mountain’ and the ‘It’s a Small World’ ride, as it featured a display of New Zealand culture! This display included two kiwis and a doll wearing a korowai (Māori cloak), a flax piupiu skirt, and a tīpare (a woven headband). It was cool to finally feel included as the small country we are! There was a train operating at Disneyland which assisted us in travelling around the park speedily. We got to meet Darth Vader in Star Wars land, and we got on some cool rides the whole family enjoyed, especially my dad. For lunch, we went to Cafe Orleans, which is a cajun restaurant in New Orleans Square. I had a Battered and Fried Monte Cristo Sandwich, which shocked my tastebuds as the bread for the sandwich was sweet! When we were at Disney, it was actually Disneyland California’s 70th anniversary so we got to see so many amazing parades and a breathtaking firework show at night. When we went to the California Adventure Park, we got the thrill of a lifetime! The Guardians of the Galaxy: Mission Breakout ride made our hearts race as we dropped and rose, dropped and rose through the tower. My favourite ride in the park was the Grizzly River Run, which was somewhat similar to the Log Flume at Rainbow’s End, just with circular boats instead of logs and more small drops. The Incredicoaster was also super cool, and the Golden Zephyr swings were a relaxing way to get a great view of the park. We went to Hollywood land, where we could see how they make animated films and we even encountered Spider-Man jumping from rooftop to rooftop in the Avengers Campus. Overall, both of the California Disney Parks were better than I could have ever imagined, and I wish to return in the future! Charlie Peterson is in year 9 at Macleans College
